The Qinghai-Tibet Railway has not only been driving the economic development of Tibet, but also dramatically changed people's life in a village located near the Lhasa Railway Station, the terminal of the railway.

Liuwu villagers' new residential houses. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Zhang Ru has more.

Trucks, buses and cars are crossing the Liuwu Bridge, which spans the Lhasa River.

The bridge is designed to shorten the travel distance between downtown Lhasa and Lhasa Railway Station, which are separated by the river.

Liuwu Village is located near the Lhasa Railway Station.

Liuwu villagers' new residential houses. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Villager Dan Zen says that before the bridge was put into use in 2007, traveling through this area was very inconvenient.

"Previously, if we wanted go to downtown Lhasa, we had to take boats made from oxhide."

Now it takes only 10 minutes to drive from Liuwu Village to downtown Lhasa.

Liuwu was once a poor, out-of-the-way village.

Liuwu in the past days. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

Da Wa Sang Bu, head of Liuwu Village, says that the railway station has been very beneficial for the village.

"Since the railway station was put into use, the passenger and cargo volumes have been increasing. Taking advantage of the businesses opportunities brought by the railway, the villagers are now running grocery stores, small restaurants and home-style restaurants.

The villagers have also established a delivery team.

Villager Danzen says that her father is working in this business.

The family bought a new truck after the railway opened to the public. Now they are conducting transportation works in the Liuwu New District. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

"We used to depend on farming to make a living. Now most families have bought trucks to operate transport businesses. The annual income of my family has increased from 30,000 Yuan to more than 100,000 Yuan."

The railway station has also kickstarted the urbanization of the village.

A 42-square kilometer area entitled 'Liuwu New District' is under construction.

Now the nearly 1700 villagers have moved to the newly-built residential buildings which have been built in the traditional Tibetan Style.

Zheng Fengcai, director of the Management Committee of Liuwu New District says it will become a major hub for financial, real estate and tourism industries.

"The Liuwu New District was built to take full advantage of the station's role as a transportation hub. The district is now taking shape with the completion of basic facilities such as roads. Now we are trying to attract more enterprises to settle down here."

From a small village to a new modern district, the change of Liuwu epitomizes the Qinghai-Tibet Railway's economic impact.

During the past five years, the rail line has boosted various industries throughout Tibet.

Basang, the head of the railway department of the regional Development and Reform Committee says the railway has improved the region's logistics capabilities.

Ba Sang (right), the head of the railway department of the Tibet Development and Reform Committee. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

"We used to transport products into Tibet by vehicle. Now the trains carry the products to logistics centers in Naqu and Lhasa and then the products are distributed to different places in Tibet. In the meantime, thanks to the railway, more Tibetan specialties such as mineral resources, mineral water and beer as well as farm produce and animal husbandry products can be sold to other parts of the country and even abroad."

The tourism industry also benefits from the railway. By the end of last year, Tibet received about 6.8 million tourists from home and abroad, about five times the amount in 2005, prior to the opening of the railway.

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